Curse of the Moon Goddess

We arrived back to the packhouse without incident. Sage seemed oddly comfortable holding on to me as we raced back. However, once we parked and her helmet was off; she was rushing back to the packhouse faster than humanly possible. I released half a chuckle. I really didn’t understand that girl.

I followed shortly after and the sight before me was not a pleasant one.

Lukas was holding firmly onto Sage’s right arm, while Adam had the left. Both were extremely close to her, their faces etched with fury. Venessa had her arms folded, glaring first at Sage, then shifting to me as I walked in. Ian held the most disappointed look on his face that I had ever seen. Lizzy was nowhere to be seen.

My entrance caused Lukas and Adam to glance my way.

Lukas was the first to speak. His voice was harsh and condescending, “How dare you take off with her. Not only that, but the two of you were alone in your room together which, as I recall, is against the rules you set. Now tell us, what the *beep* were you thinking?”

“For once,” Adam spoke, “I agree with him.”

I smirked, shaking my head in the process.

I sensed Sage tense up as both Lukas and Adam tightened their grip on her and pulled her in closer.

With a scowl, I ordered, “Unhand her.”

Both Lukas and Adam in sync started, “You have no right…”

“Yeah, right I don’t have the right. Unhand her before I rip her hands off so you can’t hold her again.”

Both faces went dark, neither removing their grip. As I moved to act, Venessa spoke up, “What’s your deal Jace? She’s got nothing to do with her. You’re mine, so why are you meddling in some other chick’s beeswax?”

I turned to her, my voice serious as I spoke, “Or what? What will you do about it? I’m not officially yours yet and she’s not officially anyone’s yet either. So, when I say let go, I mean let go now.”

“What if she likes it? Did you think about that?” Lukas asked.

“I don’t.”

The room went still as Sage looked straight into the men’s eyes, “Listen to Jace and let go. He’s the only one that has permission to touch me.”

Even I found myself surprised by her last sentence. I desperately hid my smile and blush. If I didn’t know her story, I would have thought she was meaning in another way, but I know she meant it in a different way. Everyone else was about to find that out too.

Lukas was furious as he let go, but asked, “What do you mean by he can touch you?”

Sage didn’t even hesitate as she elaborated, “He’s proven a gentleman and someone I can trust. Unlike you or Adam or any other man I’ve met, when given a chance to reach for my hand or hold me or anything else, he didn’t take it. In fact, it’s been the complete opposite. He’s helped me overcome my fear of men. He’s helped me see that not all men are dangerous and one-tracked minded. And now, I have a home where I can feel safe and not worry about a man barging into my room to please himself!”

The room was completely still until Lizzy, who had emerged at some point, spoke up, “What?”

Sage looked at her dear friend who had tears in her eyes as she continued, “What do you mean Sage? Your uncle, he didn’t… he wouldn’t, right?”

A tear fell from Sage’s eyes as she replied, “He did.”

Lizzy came rushing up to Sage, engulfing her in a hug and tears as she repeated over and over, “I’m so sorry. I had no idea. That’s horrible. I’m so sorry.”

Lukas, Adam, Venessa, and Ian all held their heads down in shame, finally understanding the situation in full. I didn’t feel guilty about withholding that information. I didn’t care they had misinterpreted everything. Because deep down, I knew there was something more here. It was more than I had figured out her secret. It was more than I was a gentleman. As much as I tried to deny it, I knew I no longer saw Sage as some girl I rescued from the woods. She was no longer a girl I felt sorry for or wanted to just take care of. She was someone I found I deeply cared about. She is beautiful, fearless, determined, smart, but most of all, I was starting to no longer see Aleina when I looked at her. In fact, I realized, for the first time since I first fell in love with Aleina, I had gone several hours without thinking about her.